The number one goal in the off season is undoubtedly to put on as
much muscle as possible. I think that the perfect way to accomplish
this is through a combination of intense training, proper dieting,
sufficient recovery time, and strategic supplementation. In order to maximize
growth, you must be consistent.

You must be willing to make sacrifices
and also put up with criticism from others. You would be surprised to
see how much others are concerned with something that doesn't concern
them. Don't worry about the distractions, just concentrate on staying
focused.

Intense Training

When I say intense, I don't mean to sacrifice form in order
to do the most weight that you can physically hold for a set, or doing
endless reps with light weight. Training with maximum intensity entails
forced reps with heavy weight and strict form. Avoid using weight that
you cannot control.

What I usually do is try one set with a weight
that I can do about ten to twelve clean reps with in order to gauge my
strength. Keep in mind that this weight should feel heavy, I mean it
should be a challenge to make it through the set. It probably wouldn't
hurt if this "warm-up" included one or two forced reps.

Next, rest long
enough to catch your breath, pick a heavier weight for your next set,
and then go to work. One or two sets should be plenty, if you can do
three sets with the same weight for the same amount of reps, you need to
increase your weight.

Once you get deeper into your workout, you will
probably be able to skip that initial warm-up set and jump straight into
your work set. This set should really hurt. If you doing about four or five forced reps with correct
form, you're doing well.

Avoid pausing between and resting between reps.
Your spotter is there to help you if you need it, so don't sacrifice
quality for quantity. Push through the pain until you can no longer feel
your working muscle, and then try for another rep.

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As for the number
of exercises per body part goes, I usually limit myself to between four
and six exercises. Honestly, I physically cannot do more than this.
Training with this kind of intensity is as brutal physically as it is
mentally.

Proper Dieting

There is not much to say about proper dieting. However, do
not be a fool and underestimate the effects of a poor diet. In the off
season, I aim for forty to fifty grams of protein, seventy to eighty
grams of carbohydrates, and ten to twenty grams of fat per meal. I try
to eat a good amount of vegetables every meal, about a bowl full of some
type of raw or cooked vegetable.

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My target number for meals per day is
five. Sometimes I eat only four, and other times I eat as many as six
meals, depending on how long I am awake. Keep in mind that in the off
season, I weigh around 200-205 pounds, so try and figure out from that
how much you should be eating.

Also, if you are younger (14-19), you
can probably eat more than this since your body is growing at faster
rates than mine. If you can eat more, then do so, remember, it is the off
season, a little bit of fat won't hurt.

It is possible to eat too
much, even when the food that you take in is healthy. Like I've said in my
previous article, excess food intake, healthy or not, gets stored as fat all the same. To avoid this,
try eating "nutrient dense" foods.

These are foods that have high amounts
of nutrients per weight, such as chicken for protein, and rice/pasta
for carbohydrates. Try to eat every three hours; four hours is pushing
it, and five hours is absolutely too much time between meals.

Never train a sore muscle. Many people will disagree with me on this, but I
really think it is a bad idea. Remember, your main objective is to grow.
You grow when you rest.

It goes like this; your muscles are broken
down during a workout, and rebuilt during times of rest. So, if you
don't rest, you will gain insufficient muscle growth, which defeats your
entire purpose.

You take major risks of working a sore muscle. During
times of soreness, working the muscle puts you at a high risk for
injury, such as tearing or straining a muscle. If you do this, then you'll
really be in trouble.

If you wait until the soreness is gone, your
muscle will be at one hundred percent and you will be able to use more
weight during your workout.

Sleeping

Sleeping really helps speed up muscle
recovery, so don't skip out on it. When you sleep your body releases its
highest amount of growth hormone, so, the more you sleep has obvious benefits.
Also, your quality of sleep is very important.

Avoid taking any type of
drug that will put you to sleep, if you do take these drugs, you deprive your body of
achieving what is called "deep sleep" or "REM".

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It is in this stage of
sleep that your body releases high amounts of growth hormone, and other
anabolic substances.

Supplementation

Supplementation is another thing that should not
be overlooked. I feel that you should really look into what you buy,
don't just buy something because it is cheap or expensive. I recommend
taking Cell-Tech Hardcore for your creatine source. You should only go through
the loading stage for no more than four days. During this loading
phase, take enough Cell-Tech to equal 20 grams of creatine per day.

After
the loading phase back down your intake to 5-10 grams of creatine per
day. Nitro-Tech is a good product that has a synergistic effect with
Cell-Tech. Nitro-Tech is a good product for keeping your body in
positive nitrogen balance, in this state, your body is using protein for
anabolic purposes instead of catabolic purposes.

Cyclo Z-Mass is excellent
for improving strength and overall performance. Taken exactly as
stated on the bottle, I think that this is one of the best things out there.
You should also notice that while taking this, your recovery time is
improved.

I've tried about three different kinds
of thermogenics, Ripped Fuel, Xenadrine EFX, and Hydroxycut, and I really
can't tell the difference between any of them. I usually just take one
or the other before a workout. These are the basic supplements that I
would recommend.

In later articles, I will get more into other
supplements and their effects.

Conclusion

I know that this sounds hectic with timing meals and killing
yourself in the gym. Trust me the results will be well worth it. My friends
and family still think I'm kind of crazy. They all ask me why I am so
serious about training. I'll tell you why...because it SUCKS to be
small!